Ireland establishes AI Office and names Paul Byrne as CEO

Ireland has established Oifig IS na hÉireann, the AI Office of Ireland, as an independent statutory body under the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence Act 2026, signed into law by President Connolly on the 21st of July. Paul Byrne has been appointed its first CEO, with the office serving as the central coordinating authority for implementing and supervising the EU AI Act in Ireland.

The EU AI Act applies directly across EU Member States and places obligations on providers, deployers and importers of AI systems and models. Ireland’s implementing law does not add new obligations for regulated entities, but creates domestic structures for oversight through a distributed regulatory model built around existing competent authorities.

The office will act as the Single Point of Contact for the European Commission, national sectoral regulators and the public. Its remit includes supporting cooperation and information sharing, facilitating access to technical expertise, helping coordinate investigations and enforcement, and driving responsible AI innovation and adoption. It is expected to be operational by 2 August 2026.

Byrne joins from the Medical Council of Ireland, where he served as Executive Director of Education, Innovation and Artificial Intelligence. His background includes senior regulatory roles at the Medical Council of Ireland, CORU and the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, as well as international work on professional regulation and AI in health.